Production Planner (Manufacturing & Operations)

Role: Production Planner (Manufacturing & Operations)

Location: Berkshire
Contract: 18 Months
Working Pattern: Full-time, 5 days per week onsite
IR35 Status: Inside IR35

About the Opportunity

We are currently recruiting for experienced Production Planners to join a highly specialised manufacturing and engineering environment on an initial 18-month contract.

This is an excellent opportunity to work within a complex, high-profile engineering and manufacturing programme, supporting the effective planning, coordination and delivery of production activities.

The successful candidates will play a key role in balancing production demand against operational capacity, ensuring manufacturing schedules are achievable, resources are effectively allocated and delivery commitments are met.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain and manage detailed production plans, translating Master Production Schedules (MPS) into daily manufacturing activities.
• Coordinate production demand and capacity across operational delivery teams, identifying and resolving scheduling conflicts.
• Create and maintain Rough Cut Capacity Planning (RCCP) models to support effective resource planning.
• Ensure Material Requirements Planning (MRP) systems are accurately maintained and reflect current production requirements.
• Plan manufacturing activities with consideration for cost, quality, resource availability and delivery timescales.
• Identify production bottlenecks, constraints and potential delays, proactively implementing solutions.
• Support manufacturing cost estimation, production scheduling and the development of Basis of Estimate documentation.
• Apply Lean Manufacturing and Production Control techniques, including Kanban, visual management and Push/Pull systems.
• Attend production planning and visual management meetings, monitoring progress and driving completion of agreed actions.
• Monitor, update and report on production performance against key performance indicators (KPIs).
• Work closely with engineering, manufacturing, operations and other stakeholders to ensure production plans are aligned with business priorities.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives to enhance manufacturing efficiency, productivity and operational performance.

Skills and Experience Required

We are looking for candidates with a strong background in production planning, manufacturing scheduling or production control, ideally gained within a complex engineering or manufacturing environment.

Essential Skills:

• Proven experience in production planning, manufacturing planning or production scheduling.
• Strong understanding of Master Production Scheduling (MPS), Material Requirements Planning (MRP) and capacity planning.
• Experience developing and maintaining detailed production schedules.
• Ability to balance manufacturing demand, resource availability and operational capacity.
• Experience using MRP or ERP systems to manage production requirements.
• Strong analytical, organisational and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to identify production constraints and implement practical solutions.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience working collaboratively with manufacturing, engineering and operational teams.

Desirable Experience:

• Experience within aerospace, defence, nuclear, automotive, advanced engineering or other highly regulated manufacturing environments.
• Knowledge of Rough Cut Capacity Planning (RCCP).
• Experience applying Lean Manufacturing principles and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Familiarity with Kanban, Push/Pull production systems and visual management techniques.
• Experience producing manufacturing cost estimates and monitoring production KPIs.
• Knowledge of manufacturing processes, production workflows and operational delivery planning.

About You

You will be a proactive, detail-oriented Production Planner who thrives in a fast-paced, technically demanding manufacturing environment.

You will be confident managing competing priorities, resolving planning challenges and building effective working relationships across multidisciplinary teams.

A continuous improvement mindset, strong attention to detail and a commitment to delivering high-quality outcomes will be essential.